Watch this creative card making technique with doodey arts & craft products. What do you need to create this 3D christmas greeting card: doodey double embossed sticker MD357084 doodey outline sticker DD7093 Book Match-It Christmas DV72801 Lomiac Card LC3142 Leftovers Green 12,5 x 12,5 cm & 5 x 5 cm Leftovers Red 6 x 6 cm & 5 x 5 cm

1. Go black and white photo for a dramatic look.  Many digital cameras have a setting that will enable you to take your photo in black and white. Or you can change a color snapshot to grayscale in your photo editing software. If you don’t know how to do it yourself, most photo card companies can do it for you at no extra charge.

2. The more, the merrier.  This year, include more than just the kids in your photo Christmas cards.  Get in the picture with them!  One year my uncle remarked that while he enjoyed receiving a photo of the kids every year, he would like to see a picture of us, too. So, gather the entire family, even the pets.  And if you have an opportunity during the year to attend a large family get together with grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins, you might consider using a large group family photo.

3. Pack the Santa hat on vacation. Whether you’re going to the beach, sightseeing in the city or pumpkin picking in the fall, bring along a holiday prop or two, such as a Christmas stocking or ornament.  When you’re taking photos of your family excursion, include a few with everyone holding or wearing the Christmas props for refreshingly different holiday photo.

4. Think personality.  While you might enjoy a posed photo of your children all cleaned up, in nice clothes, with not even a hair out of place, it doesn’t show off their real personalities.  For more interesting photo Christmas cards, try taking some candid photos of your kids doing things they enjoy.  Or pose them with props that reflect their interests or accomplishments.

5. Scrapbook a page.  If you’re creative, you can put together several cropped photos and your greeting on holiday background paper, then photograph or scan it to be used as your photo Christmas card.  Since most photo card companies use 4 x 6 inch photos to produce your cards, trim a standard 12 x 12 inch scrapbooking page to 12 inches wide by 8 inches high as your background for your layout.

6. Embellish it.  Even if you have already ordered standard photo Christmas cards, you might still be able to jazz them up a bit.  Check out the scrapbooking aisles in your local craft store for tiny embellishments, such as bows, ribbons, and other holiday dimensional items.  These are practically flat, since they are meant for a scrapbook page, so they will still fit into your envelope after you glue them on your cards.

7. Shop around.  There are so many photo Christmas card companies on the internet that are offering unique, original, personalized designs.  Some designs can even contain multiple photos, so you don’t have to worry about getting that one perfect snapshot.  Or they will put your photo into the shape of an ornament, tree, or other holiday symbol.  Many companies will let you write your own message, so you have more choices and options.  They come in all price ranges, so it pays to do some browsing.

So, don’t be afraid to try something a little different with your photo Christmas cards this year.  With a little imagination, your holiday photo cards will be truly special.

1. Try a different spin on a traditional theme.  This fall take a picture of the kids with a pumpkin snowman.  Just stack three pumpkins, graduating in size with the biggest on the bottom and their stems removed.  Paint a face on the top pumpkin, carve a small hole to hold the carrot nose, then put a Santa hat or wool cap on top and add a scarf.  If you live near the beach, you can make a sand snowman instead.

2. Transform an ordinary photo Christmas card into a religious one by adding your favorite Bible verse. Look for a company that will let you create your own personalized message, instead of just sticking with the text shown on the sample.

3. Nothing is cuter than a holiday greeting that contains a photo of an adorable animal in a seasonal setting.  The easiest way to achieve this look yourself is to take a picture of your sleeping dog or cat on top a sheet of wrapping paper or under the tree.  Add the caption, “peace on earth” and wait for the “aaaahs”.

4. Create a four seasons look with a multi photo Christmas card that has space for four photos.  Then choose pictures of your kids from the past year during the winter, spring, summer and fall. Personalize it with the words, “thinking of you at Christmas…and all year, too!”

5. Is your little one a budding artist?  He or she can help you to create a really unique holiday greeting.  Ask him to draw a picture of the family with crayons. Then, it’s your turn to cut out the faces of each family member from snapshots and glue them to the top of the crayon bodies. Take a close up photo of the masterpiece for this year’s card.

6. Are you famous for your holiday baking? If you’re always being asked for the recipe for one of your seasonal goodies, you can turn that into a fun photo Christmas card.  Write out the directions on a pretty recipe card, then clip a family photo onto the card, perhaps of the kids baking cookies. Be careful not to cover any of the instructions with that picture. You might want to add the words, “wishing you a sweet Christmas”.

7. For impact, try black and white with a touch of color.  Your favorite photo with the kids in Santa hats can be changed into an artistic black and white picture with just the Santa hats in red.  Most online photo Christmas card companies will do this for you at no extra charge.

8. Make a statement.  What makes your family tick?  Are you a bunch of beach bums, taking advantage of sun and surf every possible moment in the summer?  Then include photos in your holiday greeting of the kids playing in the waves and building sand castles.  Are you all sports enthusiasts? Then feature action shots of your children playing for their team.  Are you involved in animal rescue, active in politics, big on barbecues, busy selling homemade jewelry at craft shows, passionate about your faith? Find a way to work it into your pictures.  This year, instead of a posed portrait, give people a glimpse into your family dynamics.

9. Send a holiday greeting that takes a trip down memory lane.  For this idea, you will need to select Christmas cards that feature multiple photos.  Choose your current favorite family picture and then add one or more photos of the kids when they were younger for a then and now effect. You might want to ask the card company to change the older photos to black and white or make the current picture larger than the rest. Don’t forget to add captions underneath indicating the year the photographs were taken.

10. If you’re still looking for a fresh idea for this year’s Christmas greeting, then it’s time to browse. Start searching through the huge variety of designs in photo holiday cards online until you find one in particular that inspires you.  Maybe it’s a candy cane motif and you’ll think of posing the kids with comically oversized candy canes.  Or you’ll fall in love with one that has a pale blue background with snowflakes, which might lead you to dress the family in shades of blue.  Many times, it’s easier to pick out the card first, which will set the tone for the pictures you want to include.

This year you can have an amazing photo Christmas card that gets rave reviews from friends and relatives.  All it takes is a little inspiration and thought to make this season’s greeting a one of a kind expression of your family.